(Peru, Neb.) ­– A last-second shot by the home-standing Eagles gave Avila a 66-63 victory over Peru State Thursday night in Kansas City, Mo. Trey Bales' trey found the hole with a second left on the clock to give Avila the win after the 'Cats had tied the game with a pair of free throws 22 seconds earlier.
 
With the win the Eagles improved to 3-13 overall and 3-9 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference (Heart). Peru State fell to 5-11 on the season and are still ahead of the Eagles in conference action at 4-8. It was fourth loss in a row for the Bobcats.

 
First Half Action
 
A basket by Marley Biyendolo (Melbourne, Australia) gave the Bobcats the initial lead in the game. After a trey by Avila, Brandon Eboigbodin (Nashville) put the 'Cats back on top with a bucket, but missed the free throw. Later, Eboigbodin would make one of two free throws on two different occasions and Peru State led 6-3 with 16:04 left in the half. Allias Roberts-Burnett (Joliet, Ill.) hit a bucket at the 15:24 point in the half and the 'Cats then had a five-point lead at 8-3.
 
The game would later be tied at 12-12 before Rashad Brackeen (Oakland, Calif.) would nail a three-pointer off the fast break to put the 'Cats back on top at 15-12 with 11:44 remaining in the first twenty minutes. Avila would tie it with a trey of their own before Brackeen would dish the ball to Matej Delinac (Brampton, Ontario, Canada) to put the Bobcats back on top. Brackeen would follow with a trey and again Peru State led by five at 20-15 with just over ten minutes left in the first half.
 
Avila would eventually tie it again at 22-22 with 7:22 left and then led for the next couple of minutes before Peru State would knot it up at 30-30 with 4:50 left in the half.
 
With 3:27 left in the half, Paulius Sakinis (Klaipeda, Lithuania) completed an old-fashioned three-point play to give the Bobcats a 35-33 lead. Peru State would retain the lead at halftime as Eboigbodin finished off the half with a bucket on an assist from Brackeen to make 39-36 Bobcats.
 
Second Half Action
 
The second half had three ties early at 39-39, 43-43, and 45-45 before Avila held a led for over four minutes. Peru State regained the lead with 10:03 left in the game when Delinac drained a trey off an assist from Justin Neyland (Council Bluffs, Iowa) to put the 'Cats on top 52-51.

 
Avila would go on a 7-2 run to lead by five with 4:29 left at 58-53. Brackeen would get a hoop on an assist from Sakinis and then would follow with a trey off an assist from Biyendolo and it was tied at 58-58 with 3:26 left in the contest.
 
The Eagles would get a bucket to retake the lead before Eboigbodin would get another three-point play with a bucket and free throw and the 'Cats led 61-60. A trey by Avila would put the Eagles on top by two at 63-61 before Eboigbodin would hit a pair of free throws to produce the tenth tie of the game at 63-63 with 23 seconds left.
 
Then, with one second left on the clock, the Eagles drained a trey for their 66-63 win.

AVILA GAME BOOK
 
Team Statistics
 
Peru State outshot the Eagles as they made 23 of 55 field goals for 41.8% which included making 6 of 21 from long range for 28.6%. The Bobcats did struggle some at the free throw line making 11 of 20 for 55%. Avila made 20 of 55 field goal tries for 36.4%, but did connect on 13 of 28 from behind the arc for 46.4%. The Eagles also shot better at the free throw line making 13 of 18 for 72.2%.
 
The Bobcats more than doubled up the Eagles in rebounding as they grabbed 45 boards compared to just 21 for Avila. Both teams dished out 15 assists. Peru State had nearly double the turnovers as Avila as the 'Cats committed 23 errors while the Eagles only had 12. The 'Cats blocked five shots compared to one for Avila. Both teams finished with four steals.
 
Individual Statistics
 

Three Bobcats finished in double figures with Eboigbodin leading the way with 16 points while Brackeen added 15 coming off the bench. Delinac finished the game with ten points.
 
Eboigbodin finished with another double-double as he had a game-high 11 rebounds with Brackeen ending the game just one shy of a double-double as he had nine rebounds. B.J. Day (Lincoln), Noah Vasa (Nebraska City), and Sakinis each added five boards.
 
Brackeen dished out a game-high five assists with Sakinis, Eboigbodin, and Day each contributing two. Sakinis blocked three shots while Vasa blocked two. Eboigbodin, Biyendolo, Neyland, and Day each were credited with a steal.
 
Upcoming Games
 
Peru State will look to stop its four-game skid when they host Mount Mercy (Iowa) on Saturday at 2 p.m. Please note this is a time change from the original schedule as Mount Mercy requested the change due to their long travel. The Mustangs, newcomers to the Heart, are presently 9-6 overall and are 8-4 in conference play having won their last two contests over opponents Peru State lost to earlier in the season.
 
On Wednesday, Jan. 18, the Bobcats will be traveling to face Missouri Valley at 7:30 p.m. in Marshall, Mo. The Vikings are currently 9-6 overall and are 7-5 in the Heart. The Vikings gained a 76-73 win over the Bobcats back in November.